Guess My Parents
by ladybbq5535
Summary: Vladimir Tod is no ordinary boy. He was dropped off at his parents house to supposedly fulfill some destiny. Everyone he knows are all demigods or descendants of Greek mythology, but Vlad has yet to find out who his real parents are. It could be the key to his future. Some strong language and graphic details!
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One

Vlad was in a room—a girl's room; he was sure of it.

_How did I get here?_

When Vlad emerged in the room, he was facing a corner in the wall next to the flat screen that sat on top of a dark mahogany table to the right of the room. _What is this place?_ The walls of the room were the color of a pale orange peel. As he turned around to examine the room, he saw girlish things of dressy clothes strung all over, flowered notebooks on the desk in the left corner that were most likely full of girlish thoughts, and just felt the essence of…_girl_.

Even the pull-out couch across the television was covered in hippie flowers. The most endurable pieces of furniture of the room were the dark mahogany desk and four chairs on the left side of the room, the same-wooded coffee table bordering the couch and television, the off-white, shaggy carpet, and the tall, thin, black lamp in the farthest right corner which was on even though the window next to it portrayed daytime.

Looking to his left, he saw a door that seemed to lead to nowhere. Before he could fully think about entering through it, the room shifted on its own.

_Whoa! How did that just happen? _It was a different room. Still, he knew, it was owned by a girl. This time the walls were the color of French rose. It had all the same accessories as the last room, but now the window on the right side of the room betrayed its previous show. Now it claimed to be nighttime.

Before Vlad was able to fully access the new room, he froze. The reason was, because now, where the pull-out couch should have been was a giant, black—not to mention fearsome—laistrygonian.

The laistrygonian's body resembled that of a dragon—gargantuan and scaly. Its bottom sat on top of everything where it started at the back wall and was wide enough to come across the entire width of the room. As it progressed towards its head, its figure slimmed with its neck stretched as far across the room where Vlad was against the opposite wall. Its head was that of a snake with a spikey mane; its hot breath huffed right into Vlad's face.

_Holy fucking shit._

The thought was hardly able to fully register in Vlad's mind before the laistrygonian roared with all its might in front of him. The monster's hot breath shot out a horridly, indescribable stench and multiple specks of phlegm and saliva. _Need a quick escape! _It was a quick, subconscious thought. In a scurry, Vlad had forgotten of the door he had entered through that was on his right flank. With a quick head turn to his left, Vlad hurried out the door he hadn't realized in the other room.

Before he even made it fully out the door, the room shifted _again_! The laistrygonian was hot on his heels—its feet tromping, its claws attaching to the carpet, trying to make it across to Vlad with its neck outstretched.

Vlad hardly had time to notice with this thing chasing after him, but it seemed that every time he ran, the same door was always in the same place, and the rooms shifted between the two he was in. At times it was orange-walled and day, others it was French rose and night. Just as they did the first time, before he could even fully enter and exit through the same door, the room shifted on its own. Between the two rooms it stayed, and in every one he entered, the monster was still on his heels; its jaw ready to clomp on him, the roaring shaking the ground they ran on. It was a fleeting curiosity how the monster's mass was able to fit through the doors.

Suddenly, Vlad stopped in the bright, orange room.

The door was gone.

_Where did it go?_

He had no escape.

As he turned to look at the laistrygonian that had followed him, he saw his fate once the monster had caught up to him with its jaw wide enough for it to fit Vlad's mass. As he cringed in anticipation, the monster came closer and—

_Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep!_

Saved by the alarm.

Vladimir sat up with a start. His heart racing, he reached across his bedpost to dismiss his alarm that read 6:15AM.

He looked around in relief with the comfort of his own room. _Oh good, it was just a dream._ The walls were striped in black and red with posters of heavy metal bands and hot female celebrities. Clothes were strewn across everywhere so that he could hardly see the black carpet that floored his room.

Vlad walked, groggily, all over his clothes to get to the bathroom that was attached to his bedroom.

On with the routine he went. Brush teeth, wash face, comb hair, put on clothes, grab knife. Vladimir always made sure he had his knife with him. When you have a mysterious, almost alluring, scent as Vlad did, you made sure you had protection from monsters at all times.

Vlad was…unique. He wasn't normal, that's for sure.

It was only when he was ten did Vlad's parents tell him that, not only was he adopted of some sort, but was a creature of Greek mythology.

They told him of how he had come into their lives. One dark, rainy night, a hooded figure came to their doorstep with a baby in a blanket. The figure practically shoved the baby into his mom's arms and gave them a message before he disappeared into the rain once more: _Shield him from the dangers that wait in the near future. Make sure he fulfills his destiny._

His parents had wanted a baby, but his mom, Melina, could not conceive, so they weren't entirely reluctant to take him in. Not knowing what else to do, they brought their new baby in to what would be his home. His dad, Tomas, brought his finger a little too close to the baby's mouth. The one tooth the baby had was sharp enough to cut through his dad's skin. It reminded them of Dracula, so they cleverly named him Vladimir.

As Vlad's parents came to know and love him, not even _they_ could deny his peculiar odor. No matter how many times they bathed him, the smell would not go away. Not that it was entirely horrible, but it was certainly overwhelming. People, more like _things,_ followed them and their baby, and they feared it was due to his scent.

When he was three, Vladimir's mom, Melina, had allowed him to play in the park one afternoon. He got to play; she got to relax—of course she still kept an eye on him. Melina was sitting on a bench only a few feet from the jungle Jim, watching Vladimir play in the sandbox when she saw a strange, cloaked figure going closer to him. The figure was abnormally shaped; its head was just a bulky, fuzzy mass with what could only be described as horns on top of its head. To say it was buff would be an understatement. It was unhealthily beyond the size of a professional body-builder and towered the entire jungle Jim by a few inches.

Before Melina ran over to go get her baby, she looked around to see if anyone else was noticing this bulk of a man—if it even was man. She saw that no one else had noticed anything odd about this figure. Once the figure saw her approaching Vladimir, who was obliviously playing in the sandbox, it retreated back into the trees of the park it seemed to have come from.

Vlad was wailing as Melina carried him away from his oh so glorious sandbox.

"But I didn't finish building my castle, Mommy!" Vlad cried.

"Calm down, sweetie. You'll get to build your castle some other time," but Melina wasn't so sure she was going to take Vlad to that park again.

Melina's husband was in a situation similar to hers. Tomas was on his way to drive eight-year-old Vlad to meet the son of Tomas's friend, Henry. Before they got there, Tomas needed to buy gas for his car. They stopped at a gas station that had only a few people in it. Rolling down the windows, Tomas told Vladimir that he'd be right back so he could go inside the 7-11 to pay for the gas. When Tomas came out, he saw a short, old woman wearing a leather jacket pressed up against the backseat window of his car. Her hands were laid against the window she stared intently through. It might have been his imagination, but Tomas could have sworn he saw _claws_ where her fingernails should have been. More so, when she smiled, he thought he saw razor sharp teeth like a shark's attached to her gums. Shocked in place, he looked inside the car to see that Vlad was sitting right next to the car window the woman pressed against, looking up at her with earnest curiosity and not the fear Tomas thought he might portray.

Vladimir's odd expression is what zapped Tomas back to reality as he ran to his car to confront the old lady.

"Hey!" Tomas yelled to the woman as he ran towards her. Her hands came away from the window as she slowly retreated to the other side of the gas post. As he came closer, he scoped the other side of the gas post, but the woman seemed to have disappeared. He thought it nothing to mention, but he thought he saw a figure flying off high into the sky. Simply dismissing it as a large bird, he filled his tank as quickly as possible and got into the car.

He looked in the backseat at Vlad and asked, "Are you okay?" When Vlad nodded, Tomas was only slightly relieved as he turned the car around and out of the gas station. Their resolve was palpable, for neither of them wanted to speak about whatever had just occurred; it would only make it all the more real.

There were many more unusual occurrences like those. After researching what they could mean, Vlad's parents concluded that Vlad was somehow related to the Greek myths with gods and monsters. They didn't know how to help that much besides having him bathe in sunscreen every morning before leaving the house. It covered his smell and protected his skin from the sun—double whammy.

Once Vlad made sure he had all his wits about him, he went downstairs to eat cereal for his breakfast. When he was done, he was set to have his mom drive him to school where his torture for the day began.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: No excuse. Just procrastinated. Enjoy!**

Chapter Two

"Dang, man. You've been having this dream for weeks. What do you think it means?" Henry asked.

Henry was Vlad's one of two best friends. Henry was like Vlad—a descendant of one in Greek mythology—except he actually knew who his godly parent was. Well, everyone at Half Blood High knew who their godly parent was—even if they were related to a monster. Morpheus, god of dreams, that's who Henry's father was. Like half of the student body, Henry had found out which god he belonged to when he first came to Half Blood High.

The high school had a special system where they figured out the freshmen's parents. When they first go in, they are to report to the Godly-Purpose Room, or the GP room. It's the building next to the gymnasium which is used for things related to their parents. It is usually only used for the determination centers or classes. The reason it can be really useful is that no matter how much damage is done to it whilst exorcising one's powers, it will reshape itself back into a plain, white room after you leave. Of course the school board hired some Hephaestus and Athena construction workers to help build that architectural plan.

In the humongous GP room are stations, or determination centers. The freshmen line up according to last name at a station. When they come up to the window, there is a machine that pricks your finger, scans the DNA test results, tells you who is your godly parent, and that determines your schedule and where your locker will be.

"Maybe it has something to do with finding who your parents are," Meredith suggested. "It's possible that they could be the key to whatever destiny you're supposed to fulfill."

Meredith was Vlad's second best friend. They had liked each other for the past few years, but realized it was best if they stayed best friends. Why make a relationship more complex than necessary?

Meredith was the other fifty percent whose parents told her who her godly parent was before she came to Half Blood High. She was the descendant of Circe, a sorceress. Her adoptive parents had told her of how she came into their lives when she was seven. Circe, not wanting to leave her island to drop off a baby, had popped her to her adoptive parent's doorstep with a note of who she was, who Circe was, what was expected of her, and how she got there. Just like Vlad's parents, they had done lots and lots of research with no choice but to believe what the note said. It became even more convincing when Meredith had the ability to make pots and plates dance with her laughter when she was five.

_She is right, Vladimir_, said a voice in Vlad's mind. As anyone might react when they hear a voice, other than their own, in their head, Vlad freaked out the first time it happened. Vlad recalled the first time he heard the voice.

*_Three weeks ago_*

Vlad had just woken from the dream with the laistrygonian, sweaty and panting. It was the first time he'd dreamt of it. He sat in his bed, going over the dream again and again to try to decipher its meaning.

_You must seek the one with a sea of mystery and answers._ Vlad stilled. He waited a few seconds before calling out, "Hello?" He waited for an answer he didn't believe would come.

Vlad recalled the dream and mumbled to himself, "I must be going out of my mind."

_Heed my words, Vladimir. It will lead you to your destiny._

"Okay, who is this?" Vlad called in a frantic voice. He grabbed his knife off his bedpost and looked about his room. Minutes had passed by when Vlad realized that the mysterious voice probably wasn't coming back. Knife kept close, he went to his bathroom to get on with his morning routine.

"Hey guys, have either of you ever heard a voice in your head," Vlad asked his friends.

Both Henry and Meredith looked at each other then looked back at Vlad. "What do you mean?" Henry asked warily.

"Like a woman's voice giving riddled words."

"Uh, no," they said in unison. Vlad saw the concerned looks on his friends' faces and decided he probably should just forget about it, or he'd end up in an asylum.

"Never mind, just forget about it. I'll see you two later," Vlad dismissed it and headed to class. He would just have to figure out what Athena meant on his own.

Vlad thought about Meredith's suggestion and Athena's reassurance. "Yeah, maybe you're right."

When Henry looked at Meredith, she nodded. Before Vlad could ask about it, Henry started, "So, Vlad," he seemed hesitant, "have you heard anymore voices since last time?" Vlad stiffened. What should he say? There was hardly anything one could say about a voice in their head without making themselves sound insane. He was already worried that they might have a strait jacket ready for him in their backpacks.

Before Vlad was forced to lie to his friends, the bell for first period rang. "We better get to class," he said climbing the school's front steps. "I'll see you guys later." He saw his friends give each other one last look before they headed their separate ways to their locker sections; Henry and Meredith to the hallway known as the Minor Lockers for the minor gods, and Vlad to the Hermes section of the Olympian Lockers for those born from an Olympian god.

Now you might be asking yourself, If there's a DNA scanning that tells you your godly parent, then why does Vlad not know his? If you picked that up, then good for you! Let me tell you what happened on the first day of freshman year when dear Vladimir went to the determination center to find out his godly parent.

Vlad had walked up to the window labeled S-T. He placed his right forefinger on the cool, metal table on top of the scanner. He felt a prick and removed his hand as he saw a paper come out of a slot on his right. Vlad was beaming, ready to find out who he really was, but his face fell when he saw that the space after the words "Your Godly Parent Is" said "Inconclusive." He could've sworn he died a little inside when he saw that his schedule was full of random classes and that he would be going to the Hermes section of the Olympian Lockers. Vlad didn't understand. What was it about his blood that made his schedule inconclusive?

Not knowing what else to do, Vlad went to principal's office to see what might have happened. Principal Stone had no useful information other than that Vlad's glitch has never happened before, and advised Vlad to go to the determination center at the beginning of every school year in case he was determined differently. The next school year, Vlad had done just that, yet here he was a sophomore, still with inconclusive results, a locker in the Hermes section, and a jumbled schedule while everyone else still had the same individualized criterion schedule.

Drowning in self-pity, Vlad hobbled his way to archery class.

"So I've had an idea," Henry says before Vlad can sit down at their lunch table across from him and next to Meredith.

Vlad and Meredith both sigh. Whenever Henry has an idea, it's usually some crazy experiment that gets something, or someone, hurt or broken.

"And what, I ask warily, is your brilliant idea," Vlad asked sarcastically.

Henry shot him a glare. "I didn't claim it to be brilliant, just an idea. You know how we've been learning how to transport other people in Entrance class?" They all had the same second period class. The school would have too many classes if everyone had their own subjects, so they merged some together. "I think, with a lot more practice on my part, I can pop Meredith into your dream so she can find out what it means."

"Uh, one," Meredith started, "there is no way I'm going to allow you to _pop_ me in anywhere. Two, why can't you _pop_ in there yourself? You're the one with the dream power. Three, what makes you think I can find out what Vlad's dream means?"

"Remember when you said you found a Hidden spell in your magic textbook so that you could find your cell phone?" Henry asked. "Maybe you could use that spell to discover the hidden meaning behind Vlad's dream."

Meredith gave him an are-you-serious look. "I used it on an _object_, not a person's dream. What if I give him brain damage, or something?"

"Yeah, I'd really like to keep all my brain cells in check," said a wide-eyed Vlad. "We all know how few of those I have already. Besides, won't _popping_ in hurt?"

"Well, I've done to Melissa a bunch of times and she seems to be alright," Henry smirked. "I make sure she dreams of me at least four times a week." His grin couldn't have been any wider.

Both Vlad and Meredith gave him a disgusted expression. "That is so not cool, Henry," Meredith scolded. "Tampering with a female's emotions can be very dangerous for you."

Henry scoffed. "How? She dreams of me, realizes how much of a catch I am, she falls helplessly into my arms, and we make out happily ever after," he reasoned. "It's a water-tight plan." Just then, Melissa was walking towards them, heading to her table with her lunch in her hands. "Watch this."

"Hello, Melissa," Henry stood up and blocked her path. "You're looking lovely this fine day." He gave her one of his very charming smiles.

Melissa snorted. "Yeah, right, toad-breath. In your dreams." Then she walked off, but not before bumping Henry's shoulder with a rough shove.

"Oh, yeah," Vlad snickered with Meredith, "really water-tight."

"Whatever. She'll come begging to me soon enough," Henry grumbled, sitting back down.

"Okay, if you say so," Meredith said. "Don't say you weren't warned."

"Whatever," Henry said again, "so are we doing this dream thing, or what?" He turned to Meredith.

She looked reluctant, but nodded anyways. "I guess I could search up how to use the Hidden spell in his dream, but it might take a few days."

Henry smiled. "And I will work on popping in other people." He turned to Vlad. "You in, man? It is your dream, after all."

Vlad looked at Meredith then back at Henry. Vlad could see so many things going wrong with this, but how could he refuse when he might find out who his parents are… or who he is? In the end, Vlad finally agreed. "Yeah, man. I'm in."

"Cool. We'll try it next week after me and Meredith have practiced what we need to, and Vlad has prepared himself for a slight pinch in his brain." Vlad's eyes went wide. "I'm kidding." Henry smiled.

Henry couldn't have been more excited.

Vlad couldn't have been more scared.

**A/N: Please review. I would appreciate your thoughts.**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: In case of any confusion, Vlad's locker is in the Hermes section in chapter 2, because in the Percy Jackson and the Olympian series, they take all travelers when they don't know whom they belong to. Enjoy.**

Chapter 3

Vlad was just about ready to get out of sixth period Morphing class. This class was mainly for the monsters, but since he didn't know who, or what, he was, this was one of the classes the determination center gave him.

Today the class was practicing in the GP room, focusing on using anger to control their morphing, trying to see how long it takes them, trying to make it instant in case it is necessary. Vlad was just in a corner feeling stupid, because nothing was happening to him. Yeah, he had a lot to be angry about, but nothing seemed to be working for him. Guess he could cross morphing monster off his list, but he didn't seem to be the only one who thought this class would never end.

Veronica Mason was standing next to Vlad in the corner with both their backs against the wall and a bored expression, both of them onlooking everyone else morph into their individual creatures. Veronica was a beautiful girl; she had silky, dark brown hair that went down to the small of her back, big, brown eyes with thick eyelashes, a straight nose, and full lips. She wasn't unaware of her beauty, but Veronica's personality was more on the shy side. She and Vlad had only conversed a few times, but every time they did, Vlad had a little trouble breathing. It just so happened that Vlad had had a crush on Veronica since he met her last year in Advantage Defense class. So right now, having Veronica standing in such close proximity to Vlad made him want to hyperventilate just looking at her. He obviously needed something to keep him distracted, so Vlad grew a pair and started up a conversation.

"Hey, Veronica." _Stupid, stupid, stupid! She's been standing there since the beginning of class and I choose _now_ to say hi?_

Veronica didn't seem to mind Vlad's sudden greeting when she gave him a small smile and responded with a, "Hi, Vlad."

Vlad chastised himself internally and tried again with the conversation. "If you don't mind my asking, why aren't you morphing?"

Vlad could easily see Veronica stiffen and he fought the urge to facepalm himself. He knew that was a stupid question, he knew Veronica wasn't very open about who she was. Vlad remembered last year, when all the monsters were scrambling and practically trampling each of their friends to find out what they were, how Veronica had just sat there in the circle of her friends trying to dodge questions. He didn't understand it, but he did know that whenever he overheard someone ask her what she is, she would always respond with, "Leave me the _fuck_ alone." And whenever they practiced in the GP room, she would always just stand by, or at least pretend to try.

Before he gave her the chance to tell him off, Vlad tried to stammer an apology. "I-I'm so sorry. I-I know how you don't—I shouldn't have—I don't know why I—"

Veronica shook her head. "No, it's okay, Vlad. Really, it's okay." She paused before continuing. "You know, you're the only one who hasn't asked me what I am." She turned to face him fully. "Why is that?"

Vlad couldn't have been more confused. First she didn't tell him off, and now she wanted to know why he hasn't asked her what seemed to be a personal question? _Girls!_ Vlad tried to scramble a coherent response. "I don't know. I, uh, I guess I just understand that you want people to stop bugging you about what you are."

Veronica seemed to mull over what he was implying about himself before giving him a small smile. Just then, the bell rang to announce school dismissal. While people were shifting back to their normal form, Ms. Kellz said, "Make sure to grab your packets on your way out. There are two pages, front and back, and you will need to use your textbooks. It's due tomorrow. Have a good day."

As both Vlad and Veronica grabbed their worksheets and headed out the door, Veronica asked, "Hey, Vlad, do you want to come over to my house and we can work on these worksheets?" She seemed to have a mischievous grin, but Vlad could hardly notice with the pounding of his blood in his ears. _Veronica Mason just asked me to go over to her house. Veronica Mason just asked me to go over to her house. Veronica _freaking_ Mason just asked me to go over to her house._

Vlad hadn't realized he was staring at Veronica with his mouth agape and not breathing until he saw her concerned expression. "Unless you don't want—, "Veronica started, but there was no way Vlad could pass up an offer like that. Before she even finished her sentence Vlad said, "No! I-I mean, yes—that would be—yeah, cool, I'll totally come over." She smiled, amused at his response. "I'll, uh, meet you at your locker." Veronica nodded and stalked off.

Vlad practically sprinted for the Hermes section to find his locker. He hastily gathered his stuff and ran over to the Minor Lockers to find Henry. Vlad couldn't hold in his excitement or he'd explode, and Henry was the perfect person to tell.

Henry was slightly startled when he saw Vlad panting towards him. "Bro, what's wrong?"

"Veronica Manson—her house—homework," Vlad gasped.

Henry's eyes bugged out of his head. "Veronica _freaking_ Manson!? You've got to be joking!" Vlad shook his head with a wide grin, steadily catching his breath. "Oh my gosh, this is big, man. Okay, you need some pointers," he ticked them off his fingers. "Don't seem too eager or she'll freak out; don't keep eye contact, play it off like you don't care; talk about yourself—make her think you're cool. Girls like Veronica _love_ bad boys. If you can manage that, she'll be your girlfriend by tomorrow."

Vlad was trying to engrain Henry's pointers in his mind. He didn't want to mess this up, so he took all the help he could get. Just then, Meredith came up to the two of them in front of Henry's locker with her backpack straps on her shoulders. "Hey guys, what's going on?"

"Our little guy has got a study date." Henry wiped a fake tear. "They grow up so fast."

"Ooh," Meredith crooned. "With who?"

"Veronica Mason," Vlad and Henry harmonized.

Like Henry's reaction, Meredith's eyes nearly came out of their sockets. "Veronica _Mason?_ Are you kidding me? What the—how did you even—"

"Sorry, gotta go," Vlad interrupted, "I said I'd meet her at her locker to go to her house." He wagged his eyebrows. "Later!" Vlad ran over to the Monster Locker's hallway leaving a smiling Henry and a dumbfounded Meredith. He stopped just before the double doors so that Veronica wouldn't see him running. _Don't seem too eager._

Veronica smiled and closed her locker as she saw Vlad approaching her. "Hey, Vlad, you ready to go?"

Vlad shrugged and looked at the floor. _Don't look her in the eyes._ "Yeah, whatever."

Veronica looked confused, but didn't say anything as they left to go to her house.

"This is my lovely abode," Veronica joked as they approached her house. It was two stories and really huge.

Vlad looked at the face of it, thinking it was massive, but said, "Yeah, it's cool." _Play it off like you don't care._

"Okay, then," Veronica said. She went up the three-garage driveway and used her key to open the front door. "My parents aren't home so we'll have a little privacy." She looked back at him with a smile that seemed to have a double meaning. Vlad swallowed loudly. "Cool," he managed. Veronica kept walking up the stairs and Vlad followed, contemplating all the possibilities of what they'd be doing that would require so much privacy.

As Veronica approached a door right in front of the stairs, she opened it and walked in. She walked across the room and set her backpack down with her back facing Vlad.

Vlad froze at the door. _No way. This can't be her room._ With her back still to him, Veronica asked, "Is there something wrong, Vlad?" He couldn't tell, but he thought there was something about weird about the way she was talking and how she didn't turn around.

"Um," Vlad started, "is this your room?" He knew that was a stupid question, but he just didn't want to believe it. It was the room, or more _one_ of them. The walls—they were the color of a pale orange peel. The floor—made of a shaggy, off-white material. The furniture—dark mahogany desk and chairs to the left, dark mahogany coffee table in front of a hippie-flowered couch across from a flat-screen television on the right. Even the light was on from the thin, black standing lamp in the furthest right corner next to the open window, and not a piece of clothing or notebook was out of place. And there was a door right across from the one they just entered. _This is the room from my nightmare._

But the accessories weren't all that was off about the room. Instead of the girly feeling Vlad got from the room in his dream, the air felt sinister—like it was waiting for something to happen. Just as he thought that, both of the doors on either side of him shut. _Oh, gods._

"Doesss thisss room sseem familiar, Vladimir?" Veronica hissed. Hissed? Just then, right before his eyes, Veronica morphed. Vlad just stood there and stared as he saw what was once Veronica turn into a monster with two snake trunks as her leg replacements that led up to a snake body covered in armor, her skin—her _scales _—and armor a blend of green and bronze. It was only after she finished transforming that she turned around to let Vlad see her yellow eyes with black slits for pupils and a forked tongue rapidly going in and out between her protruding fangs.

It was when he saw her full on that Vlad reacted. "Holy Rhea! What are you!?"

Veronica didn't say anything—or _hiss_ anything —until she slithered closer to Vlad, making him press against the wall. "I, dear Vladimir, am what is known as a _dracaena_. I was sent to give you a message: do not decipher your dream, or there will be dire consequences."

"What? What consequences? And how did you know about my dream? Who sent you?"

Veronica smiled. "Oh, and if you tell anyone about what I am, I _will_ kill you." That was when she gave a hard blow to Vlad's head and his vision turned black.

Vlad gained consciousness to find himself in his room. _There is no way that was a dream._ Vlad lost no time. He took his phone out of his pocket and made a three-way phone call to Henry and Meredith.

"Hello?" Meredith said when Henry said, "'Sup, Vlad?"

"Guys, grab your Entrance and magic textbooks and get over to my house, quick. We have to figure out my dream _now._"

**A/N: I don't know if you got it, but when Vlad said "Holy Rhea" it was supposed to be like the saying "Holy mother of God," but in this case, it would be, "Holy mother of the gods," and the mother of the Olympian gods is Rhea. Heh heh, I'm so clever. Please review!**


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Vlad had just finished giving his friends a rundown of what happened after he left school with Veronica, awaiting his their response.

"So," Henry started slowly, "she _didn't_ want to study?"

Meredith smacked the back of his head. "Of course she didn't want to study, you nimrod!" She turned to Vlad. "What did she say she was again?"

"She called herself a . . . drachma? No, wait, a _dracaena_! She called herself a _dracaena_."

Meredith seemed deep in thought. "I think I've read about them somewhere, but it was a fiction series and they worked with some Luke guy."

"So my pointers _didn't_ work?" Henry asked. Vlad and Meredith gave him a look. "What? I mean, maybe if he had done it correctly, she wouldn't have gone all psycho snake-crazy."

"I think that would have happened anyway, Henry," Vlad told him. "What I'm wondering is who sent her to give me that message and what will happen when we find out what my dream means."

"Well, are you sure you're willing to risk whatever the consequences might be?" Henry asked.

"Yeah," Meredith added. "This could be really dangerous."

Vlad thought it over for a few seconds. "If someone doesn't want me to find out what it means, then there is something they don't want me to know. What if it leads me to finding my real parents? Or finding out what my destiny is?"

His friends gave each other a look. "Okay, then. We'll help," Henry said. Meredith nodded. Vlad couldn't have been more relieved. He knew his friends would come through for him.

"Okay," Vlad started, "do either of you know how to make me fall asleep instantly?" He and Meredith looked at Henry.

"Don't look at me! I'm the son of the God of _Dreams_, not Sleep."

"Then who is?" Meredith asked.

"His father, Hypnos," Henry said.

"Ugh!" Vlad was exasperated already. "Well, can't you summon some deep power that was passed from him? He's practically your grandfather."

Henry scoffed. "That's like saying a son of Poseidon should be able to slow down time. You get what you get and you don't throw a fit."

Meredith rolled her eyes. "I think I might be able to find a spell in my book." She reached into her school bag that she brought and took it out.

Eyeing the text, Henry said, "Did anyone ever tell you that your spell book looks a lot like the one from the show '_Sabrina the Teenage Witch_'?"

Vlad and Meredith both took a closer inspection of her book. "Huh, whattaya know? It does!" Meredith said.

Vlad smiled. "Oh, the irony."

Meredith smiled back as she opened her spell book. "Okay," she rummaged through the pages, "looking for s… Saucers… Scooper pooper… Shooting accuracy… Ah, here we go, sleeping spells!" She looked closer as she read aloud, "'This sleeping spell will make one fall asleep instantly for approximately 30 minutes.'" Meredith looked at Henry. "Do you know how long a dream lasts?"

"Well, it really depends on the dream," Henry replied, "but if I can speed up the dream to the part when he gets to the laistrygonian, then maybe it won't take so long."

"Why do you want to speed it up to the laistrygonian?" Vlad asked.

Meredith responded him. "That's how I'm going to find out what your dream means. I have to put a spell on the laistrygonian because it's the only other character in there." Vlad didn't really understand how that was going to work, but didn't want to waste time on explanations, so he just nodded his head.

"Hang on," Meredith turned to Henry. "How are you going to speed up the dream if you're not in it?"

Now Henry rolled his eyes. "Helloo, I'm obviously going in there after I pop you in first." He scoffed, "Amateur."

As Meredith sent him a glare, Vlad said, "Uh, is it really safe for _all_ of us to be in there? I mean, surely there's a limit to how many people can just _pop_ in there. And also," he continued, "about this fast-forwarding business—"

"We don't have time to explain everything!" Henry reminded him. "If you don't want to risk the chance of your snake friend coming and trying to stop us, then we better get started." Meredith nodded.

"Okay." Vlad took a deep breath. "Let's do this."

"Lay on your back," Meredith ordered, and Vlad complied. She placed her hand on his forehead.

"What are you doing?" Vlad asked.

"I'm concentrating on the part of your brain that controls dreams." She closed her eyes and started chanting the spell from her book, "_Eithe e duname tou upnou sumbainoun._" As Meredith continued chanting with her eyes closed in concentration, Vlad could feel himself slipping into unconsciousness. The last thing he saw before he was sucked into his dream was Henry's forehead glow…

**Line break**

Vlad was in the orange peel colored room. He just stood there and waited for something to happen. It was only a few seconds before he felt warmth on his right side. Vlad saw heat waves next to him as the warmth increased and instantly thought of a jump scar like from the movie _Jumper_. Then the heat waves materialized to make Meredith's form until she was completely next to him. In the forefront of his brain, Vlad felt a stab of pain as another jump scar formed on his left side. The heat increased again until it made Henry's form.

"Sweet, it's a girl's room." Henry smirked. "I could have some serious fun in here."

Meredith slapped his arm. "Henry! There is a task at hand. We don't have time for you to be a pervert."

"Why did I feel pain after the both of you came in?" Vlad asked.

"That's because your brain isn't used to being manipulated," Henry told him. "Okay, fast-forwarding time." He closed his eyes and his forehead glowed again. The room shifted as they all entered the French rose colored room.

"What's up with—," Vlad started, but was interrupted by a hissing.

"What did I tell you?! Can you _not_ follow sssimple instructionsss?!"

They all turned around not only to see the laistrygonian, but Veronica Mason in her _dracaena_ form, seething rage, her hissing filling the silence in the room.

"You were right," Meredith said quietly to Vlad. "She is creepy-looking."

Veronica's head couldn't have snapped faster in Vlad's direction. "YOU TOLD THEM?!" Her shriek reverberated against the small room's walls making it sound even louder. "Now I'll have to kill you!" Right then, her scaly snake legs jumped as she lunged, claws outstretched for Vlad's throat.

"Henry!" Both Meredith and Vlad shrieked Henry's name, but Henry's eyes were already closed, chanting something under his breath. When his forehead glowed, everything froze. The air was stilled. Veronica was levitating in mid-lunge, the crazy glint in her eyes locked on Vlad's, and her arms locked in place almost reaching Vlad; the monster sat unmoving behind her, its nostrils flared. As Henry opened his eyes, his feet swayed just about nearly fell to the floor. Meredith reached over to hold him upright by his elbow.

"Henry, you're dead on your feet." She guided him to a chair at the mahogany desk to the left of the room that was furthest from the laistrygonian. "You need to rest before you pass out."

Henry gave a sleepy smile. "Yeah, all of this dream business is really tiring." He turned his sly grin in Vlad's direction. "Bro, you've got to keep me out of your dreams," he said before he collapsed in the chair and his breathing got heavy.

"Okay." Meredith walked back over to Vlad. "Now I have to perform the Hidden spell on the laistrygonian." She consulted her spell book in her bag that Vlad hadn't noticed she'd brought with her. She opened it to where it was bookmarked, held her hand palm-out to the beast, and said, "_Apokalupse mustika sou_." A little light shot out of her palm into the laistrygonian as it came to life whilst everything else was still frozen.

The monster shook its head like a wet dog, its spikey mane twisting this way and that. It sat upright and spoke in a deep voice. "Vladimir Tod has information to seek. He must go far and wide to discover it, but it will haunt him forever, if not kill him, to not find out about his true parents." As it finished, its voice drained out like a robot shutting down and slumped back into its frozen position.

Vlad could feel Meredith turn to him to see how he might react to that, but at first, Vlad just stood there soaking in the message. Then he started to get furious. _That_ was it? _That_ was the great thing his dream meant, something he'd already guessed at? There couldn't have been some instructions on _how_ to acquire that information? He was back at square one! He went through the trouble, through the dreams, through the monsters to get some answers, but was just stuck with more questions.

Meredith sensed his anger and laid her hand on his arm. "We'll find a way to find your parents, Vlad." She practically whispered. "Don't worry, we'll find a way."

_Soon, Vladimir, the answers will be revealed._ That voice. Athena's voice. Vlad was practically frothing at the mouth. Where had she been? Why hadn't she just told him what his dream meant, or better yet, save him the trouble and just tell him who his parents are? Couldn't she do anything more than giving him riddles he didn't want? _No,_ Vlad thought to himself. _It's not the best idea to be angry at a goddess._ He sighed. _I just hope those answers come _really_ soon._ Vlad just turned to Meredith and gave her a small smile.

She smiled back and said, "We should probably get back." She turned to Henry slumped in a chair with his head on his arms, snoring slightly. "Henry, get up!"

He stirred and pulled his head up, drool sliding down his chin. "Huh—what?"

Meredith chuckled. "It's time to go, Sleeping Beauty. Speaking of beauty, you have some drool on your chin."

He wiped at it and stood up and walked over to the two. "Oh, ha ha, very funny." The two kept laughing. "So what are we going to do about psycho snake-chick?" He nodded towards the still frozen Veronica.

Vlad walked up to her and swung his fist into the side of her face, and by the crunch, breaking her nose. "That's for rendering me unconscious, crazy!" He yelled in her face. Her head shifted when he punched her, but otherwise stayed unmoving.

"Vlad!" Meredith gasped. "You're not supposed to hit a girl!"

"All's fair in dreams and psycho snake chicks," Henry said. She and Vlad just shugged. "Alright then, let's get this show on the road." His forehead glowed as he took all of them out of Vlad's dream.

**Line break**

Vlad spent the next week thinking about what had happened in his dream. He barely did anything but go through the motions, preoccupied with trying to figure out his next course of action. He hadn't had that dream, or any, since they uncovered the last one's meaning, and Athena didn't have any encouraging riddles for him either. It was the night exactly one week after what happened that he had a dream. There was really nothing much except a man's voice saying things to him, but the words didn't make that much sense. It seemed almost like… A poem? No, it held a bigger meaning than a regular poem. A riddle? No, but almost like… A prophecy!

Vlad sat upright in his bed. "I have to go on a quest!"

**A/N: Please review any questions or comments you may have.**


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